Is Gates Foundation a good company to work for?

Gates Foundation has an overall rating of 3.7 out of 5, based on over 699 reviews left anonymously by employees. This rating has decreased by 3% over the last 12 months. 63% of employees would recommend working at Gates Foundation to a friend and 70% have a positive outlook for the business. The best reviews about Gates Foundation have been left by employees working as Program Assistant , Senior Program Assistant and Associate Program Officer .

Does Gates Foundation pay their employees well?

According to anonymously submitted Glassdoor reviews, Gates Foundation employees rate their compensation and benefits as 4.5 out of 5. Find out more about salaries and benefits at Gates Foundation. This rating has improved by 5% over the last 12 months.

How satisfied are employees working at Gates Foundation?

63% of Gates Foundation employees would recommend working there to a friend based on Glassdoor reviews . Employees also rated Gates Foundation 3.3 out of 5 for work life balance, 3.4 for culture and values and 3.2 for career opportunities.

What are the top reviewed jobs at Gates Foundation?

Program Officer (56) , Program Assistant (40) , Senior Program Officer (36) , Deputy Director (20) , Senior Program Assistant (16) , Associate Program Officer (12) , Program Coordinator (11) , Project Manager (9) , Director (7) , Program Manager (7) , Senior Officer (6) , Associate Strategy Officer (5) , Consultant (5) , Intern (5) , Senior Program Coordinator (5)

What are the pros of working at Gates Foundation according to real employee reviews?

"Benefits are great and very comprehensive" ((in 136 reviews)); "Great people to work for" ((in 56 reviews)); "There are so many great colleagues and experiences to learn from." ((in 51 reviews)); "Great benefits and pay." ((in 21 reviews)); "Great opportunities to learn about making an impact at scale" ((in 14 reviews))

What are the cons of working at Gates Foundation according to real employee reviews?

"Culture is toxic and impractical" ((in 40 reviews)); "Instead, she seems more concerned with promoting her own profile than reforming bad management." ((in 23 reviews)); "Most of the senior leadership at this (global organization) is white and male" ((in 20 reviews)); "You will be the luckiest if you end up in a team that has a great manager." ((in 18 reviews)); "Terrible work/life balance." ((in 15 reviews))

What are employees saying about Gates Foundation layoffs in 2026?

Explore Glassdoor’s employee reviews to understand what current and former employees are saying about Gates Foundation layoffs and their outlook for job security at Gates Foundation in 2026.

What are the top reviewed Gates Foundation locations?

Seattle , Washington , New York , Chicago , Ridgewood , North Chicago , Vienna , Phoenix , Omaha , Arlington , San Antonio , Virginia , Los Angeles , Mountain View , Palo Alto , United , Laurel , Jacksonville , Boston , Cambridge , Springfield , South Seattle

Gates Foundation reviews

3.7

63% would recommend to a friend

(561 total reviews)

Mark Suzman

81% approve of CEO

70% positive business outlook

Company ratings over time

Ratings trend for the last 6 months (561 reviews)

Ratings by demographic groups

Race / Ethnicity

Gender

Sexual orientation

Disability

Parent or family caregiver

Veteran status

Gates Foundation has an employee rating of 3.7 out of 5 stars, based on 561 company reviews on Glassdoor which indicates that most employees have a good working experience there. The Gates Foundation employee rating is in line with the average (within 1 standard deviation) for employers within the Nonprofit & NGO industry (3.7 stars).

Reviews by job title

561 reviews

3.0

Nov 19, 2015

Could be so much better

Anonymous employee

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

It's a tremendous honor to work on behalf of such a good mission and a pleasure to work alongside so many smart, dedicated people. The building is beautiful, the benefits are fantastic and the travel opportunities are one of a kind.

Cons

It is incredibly bureaucratic and extremely poorly led at the senior management level. It is far too difficult to get work done. We spend more time talking to each other via powerpoint than focusing on external recipients. Reorganizations are so frequent, it is a long-running internal joke. Most of the leaders who are instituting these reorganization decisions don't know the work because they haven't been there long. Inevitably, these architects leave in two years and the process starts all over again. It's exhausting.

2.0

Nov 5, 2015

Senior Program Officer

Senior program officer, global health

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

Smart people, endless resources, great compensation and benefits, lots of interesting travel, willingness to take risks.

Cons

Too many internal politics and too much bureaucracy. Too much "stakeholder buy-in" required to make decisions and move projects forward. Terrible work/life balance. Tons of email and meetings and not enough time to do actual thoughtful work.

2.0

Feb 28, 2014

Invaluable experience at a failed organization, especially early in career

Program officer

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

- Great mission; big audacious goals - Incredible campus right near downtown - Many informal opportunities for learning, such as lunch and learn (esp. across silos) - Very good cafeteria - Great benefits and retirement package - Robust culture that keeps you on your toes - Many lessons learned about working with difficult people in a very politically complex environment (see cons)

Cons

I've received invaluable experience; learning how to not manage an organization. If management education programs are about giving you the tools to successfully manage an organization, the foundation abounds with lessons from the other side of the coin. Valuable learning in: - Sustaining a culture of distrust and animosity both between teams and between layers in the chain of command - Spending billions on foreign investments with little to no accountability - Selecting inappropriate technology solutions and rolling them out improperly - Engaging external consultants at a very high price while not setting value expectations - The risks of putting HR in charge of managing an organization's people with no checks and balances The foundation is a total shipwreck, but shipwrecks are valuable warnings to others so they may navigate a safer course.

Viewing 52 - 54 of 561 Reviews

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Jobs at Gates Foundation

Associate Communications Officer, Social Media

Senior Communications Officer, Creative Partnerships (Limited Term Role*)

Senior Communications Officer, Brand Experiential Design

Senior Research Scientist, Population Health Modeling (Nutrition and Disease) (*2-year LTE)

Coordinator, Business Project Management (Convenings) (LTE until 31 December 2027)